* From the Tribune…
We’ve never believed that capping campaign contributions is an effective way to subtract money from politics. Candidates and their donors will always find the loopholes, even when they aren’t as obvious as the ones that were built into the last supposed reform bill. But we agree completely that putting caps on some groups but not on others makes things worse, not better.
Lawmakers are looking for a bone to toss the watchdogs — spending limits on leaders during primary races, maybe, or sewing up a few of the remaining loopholes in the disclosure rules. None of that would redeem this.
Watch for Madigan’s members to do as they’re told, though, and pass a plan that ties everyone’s hands except party leaders. Senate President John Cullerton can tell his troops to second it, and lawmakers will go home bragging that they’ve committed reform by passing the state’s first limits on campaign contributions.
Three things…
1) There can be no caps on uncoordinated independent expenditures by special interests, so the Trib is glossing over a problem there. In essence, if the Trib got its way everybody would be capped except the special interests. Also, the leaders would still be able to do uncoordinated independent expenditures.
I’m actually for this leadership cap, but I don’t think for a minute that it’ll solve anything. I just think that they oughtta do it, appease the screamers, and move on.
2) Will they really pass something this week? Part of the bill introduced by Madigan takes effect on January 1st of next year. That means a three-fifths vote will be required for passage.
That’s doubtful unless something is changed in the bill. Madigan apparently believes the legislation will benefit his members, despite the rages of editorial boards, because some of his targets have signed on as co-sponsors, including appointed North Shore Rep. Carol Sente, and, to a lesser extent, Southland Rep. Kevin McCarthy.
3) The “primary only” cap may be sparking a tiny bit of sunlight…
A revised legislative proposal that surfaced Friday would set limits on how much money parties and caucus leaders could contribute to candidates — but only for primary elections, not for general elections. The limits would be $100,000 for House candidates and $200,000 for Senate and statewide candidates.
“We’re not in love with it,” said Cynthia Canary, director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. […]
“To my mind, it would be an inadequate bill,” Canary said. “It could also be a bill with other things that are meaningful.”
That doesn’t sound like a complete, outright rejection. We’ll see how it progresses. Dividing the reformers will be key to the leaders’ strategy here. If they can accomplish that, then maybe some Republicans will be forced on board.
Sen. Don Harmon is the lead negotiator for the Senate Democrats…
“Is there even a shred of evidence that a legislator is under the thumb of a legislative leader because of campaign spending? I don’t see it,” [Harmon] said. “I see members elected from competitive districts vote in the best interests of their district, which is often counter to the way the legislative leader votes.”
Actually, they’re usually told what’s in the best interests of their districts and then they vote accordingly.
* To the bigger problem…
A secret hiring database kept by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s administration is shedding new light on a controversy over lucrative pressure-washing jobs that went to a Cicero company owned by a major Blagojevich campaign contributor.
The contributor — William Mologousis, owner of Pressure Washing Systems Environmental Inc. — helped his brother-in-law Robert Millette land a $95,000-a-year job as the Illinois Department of Transportation’s finance and administration chief in 2003, the records show.
The next year, Mologousis’ company got a $522,000 contract to pressure-wash state bridges, building facades and expressway tunnels. The deal also included a “pilot program” under which his company, known as PWS, would clean and seal a half-dozen IDOT salt storage domes.
That pressure-washing contract set off a huge political firestorm in 2005. And now we know that Mologousis got a total of 11 people hired or promoted, 10 at IDOT alone.
* Related…
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* Schoenburg: Holland wasn’t fazed by ‘transition’ talk